1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to automated and possibly computer-driven installations for transporting containers for products flowing by gravity, which installations are intended, in particular, for the pharmaceutical industry, as well as a device able to carry a container and able to move independently.
2) Description of the Prior Art
Pharmaceutical factories of horizontal type are known, in which the various pieces of equipment and premises used for the manufacturing process are essentially arranged on one and the same level. In such factories, the raw materials and the products at the various stages of production are transported in containers of any type (drums, bags, boxes, etc.) generally placed on pallets and moved by vehicles of the forklift truck type, driven by an operator.
Today, such factory concepts are considered as outmoded since they no longer make it possible to satisfy the modern requirements for separation of the various circuits of personnel and of flows of materials, for absence of cross-contamination and for operator protection.
More recent types of factories also exist, which the professional literature currently describes as "Lhoest Type Plants", arranged in several storeys. In these factories, one or more storeys are reserved for production or for processing of pharmaceutical products in which very strict requirements for cleanliness, or even for sterility, are met. These production storeys are sandwiched between storeys known as "technical" storeys which serve not only for fluid and energy distribution, but above all for the transport and storage of the raw materials and of the products in the course of manufacture. In this case, the said materials and products above are enclosed and sealed in standardized containers, which are specially designed for this purpose and which make it possible to feed the production apparatus, using the force of gravity, by virtue of specially designed feed stations situated in the ceiling. Similarly, the products manufactured by the production apparatus flow out by gravity, through reception stations situated in the floor, into standardized containers situated on the lower storey. These factory concepts apply equally to the manufacturing of bulk pharmaceutical forms (tablets, capsules, granules, coated tablets, pellets, syrups, droplets, ointments, etc.) as to their filling and packaging.
These multi-storey factories meet the strictest requirements. They are generally automated, and driven by computer. In such factories, the products in their standardized sealed containers are moved using automatic handling vehicles, in particular automatically guided vehicles, called A.G.V. below (from "Automated Guided Vehicle"), sometimes coupled to handling vehicles called transtockers or stackers (from "stacker cranes"). Despite numerous advantages, A.G.V.s nevertheless exhibit significant drawbacks: they are expensive and heavy (1 to 3 tonnes unladen weight, 2 to 5 tonnes when laden); they can move only on specially designed and perfectly flat floors, endowed with fairly precise electrical conductivity and surface roughness. Their technology is complex and intricate. They require considerable corridors and manoeuvring space in which to circulate. Finally, due to their mass, they lead to a heavier building structure. Consequently, overall, their use is relatively expensive.